Accessory pocket attachment for garments

ABSTRACT

A utility pocket having a waterproof enclosure with an opening covered by a transparent material. The pocket includes a flap which can be selectively opened to reveal an item contained within the waterproof enclosure. The enclosure allows for storage of relatively low profile items such as identification cards and keys. A method of attaching the pocket in combination with the associated components allow for reduced thickness to create a streamlined, integrated look with outerwear to which it is attached.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention concerns apparel. More particularly, the inventionis directed to an attachment pocket which can be attached to varioustypes of outerwear garments.

2. Description of the Prior Art

After market pockets adapted for attachment to previously purchasedgarments are well known in the art. These pockets, commonly called“utility” or “accessory” pockets are generally used to contain itemswhich need to be readily accessed or which might not fit into theexisting pockets for the “target” garment. The majority of these pocketsare of the removably attached type, which are held onto the garmentusing attachment means which allow for selective removal andreplacement, e.g., Velcro®. The removably attached type of pocketsuffers from several drawbacks. First, they have the appearance of anaftermarket attachment, and therefore tend to “cheapen” the appearanceof the target garment Secondly, regardless of the type of attachmentused, they can become skewed, twisted, or bunched over time, furtherdegrading the visual appeal of the garment. Finally, they are subject tounintended removal, possibility resulting in the loss of the itemscontained therein.

The other type of utility or accessory pocket is the permanentlyattached type. These are usually stitched in, and are intended for avery specific purpose such as holding ink pens or a calculator.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,438,062 issued to Dobell is typical of the removabletype of pocket. A Velcro® border secured to the interior facing side ofthe pocket is sized for attachment to a mating Velcro® strip on thegarment. The pocket allows for changing the breast patch or logo on ablazer. By contrast, the present invention is directed to a heavy dutyutility pocket which is attachable to outerwear such as a coat or fleecegarment.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,336 issued to Gootrad discloses a combinationattachment for a garment wherein at least one interior waterproofcompartment is provided. Gootrad is attached using an adhesive which,apparently, forms a waterproof seal. The present invention contemplatesa waterproof utility pocket which includes a waterproof enclosure whichis also transparent, allowing the user to selectively display an item,e.g., an identification card, without removing the displayed item fromthe enclosure.

The present invention is directed to a utility pocket having awaterproof enclosure with an opening covered by a transparent material.The pocket includes a flap which can be selectively opened to reveal anitem contained within the waterproof enclosure. The flap is constructedso as to provide a watertight seal for the enclosure. The enclosureallows for storage of other small items such as keys. A method ofattaching the pocket in combination with the associated components allowfor reduced thickness to create a streamlined, integrated look withouterwear to which it is attached.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a major object of the invention to provide an accessory pocket forattachment to outerwear which allows for the selective display of itemscontained therein.

It is another object of the invention to provide an accessory pocket forattachment to outerwear constructed to have a streamlined appearance.

It is another object of the invention to provide an accessory pocket forattachment to outerwear having a waterproof enclosure.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide an accessory pocketfor attachment to outerwear wherein the waterproof enclosure includes awindow through which an identification card is visible.

Finally, it is a general goal of the invention to provide improvedelements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposesdescribed which is dependable and fully effective in accomplishing itsintended purposes.

These and other objects of the present invention will become readilyapparent upon further review of the following specification anddrawings.

The present invention meets or exceeds all the above objects and goals.Upon further study of the specification and appended claims, furtherobjects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to thoseskilled in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various other objects, features, and attendant advantages of the presentinvention will become more fully appreciated as the same becomes betterunderstood when considered with the accompanying drawings, in which likereference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout theseveral views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an outerwear garment illustrating theplacement of an accessory pocket thereon.

FIG. 2 shows an isolated perspective view of the accessory pocket of theinvention.

FIG. 3 shows a plan view of the accessory pocket with the protectiveflap open.

FIG. 4 shows a plan view of the accessory pocket with the protectiveflap closed.

FIG. 5 shows a side sectional view of the accessory pocket attached to agarment.

FIG. 6 shows a plan view of the accessory pocket enclosure illustratingthe relation of the water tight sealing means to the inner enclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to FIGS. 1-6, the accessory pocket attachment of thepresent invention, generally indicated by the numeral 10, is shown. Itcan be seen that the pocket 10 is designed for attachment to a garment12, which is preferably an outer garment such as a ski parka. One of theprimary objectives of the invention is to provide a means to allow auser to selectively display an identification card, ski pass, or otherdocument in an outdoor environment without the inconvenience of havingto go through a pocket to pull out and open a wallet. To that end, thepocket 10 includes an enclosure 13 having a transparent window 14 behindwhich an identification card can be disposed. The enclosure 13 is sizedto contain other items as well. A protective covering or flap 15 isattached to the garment 12 in such a way as to provide waterproofing forthe enclosure 13, the flap 15 being movable between open and closedpositions to allow for selectively displaying the identification card aswill be explained in more detail later.

The pocket 10 comprises three main components which are attached to eachother and the garment 12 so as to substantially reduce the profile ofthe pocket 10 relative to the outer surface of the garment 12,effectively streamlining the pocket 10 to maintain the originalaesthetics of the garment 12. The three components each are attacheddirectly to the garment, with each having relatively thick borderportions to enhance the durability of the attachment. Each of the borderportions are laterally spaced by a predetermined position to avoidbunching and to enhance the overall appearance of the pocket 10.

The first component of the pocket 10 is a hook and loop type fastenercomponent (i.e., Velcro®) fashioned as a strip 18 which cooperates withthe flap 15 to create a water tight boundary for the enclosure 13, theflap and the enclosure 13 forming the second and third components,respectively, of the pocket 10. The Velcro® strip 18 is continuous aboutthree sides of the enclosure 13 with the exception of a notch or spacing20 which allows for placement of pull tab 22 on flap 15 therein, thepull tab 22 serving to allow for disengaging of the flap 15 from theVelcro® strip 18. In order to reduce the thickness of the accessorypocket attachment 10, the Velcro® strip 18 is double stitched directlyonto the garment 12 with stitching 23, the Velcro® strip in spacedrelation about the periphery 26 of enclosure 13, as opposed to beingstitched directly onto edge portions of the enclosure 13. Preferably,the Velcro® strip 18, is attached to the garment first to ensure properspacing between the enclosure 13 and the Velcro® strip 18, and to allowfor visualizing the aesthetic impact of a selected pocket location.Specifically, once Velcro® strip 18 is attached to the garment 10, theenclosure 13, which is also double stitched directly onto the garment 12via stitching 25, may be centered to enhance the uniformity of thepocket 10. Preferably the spacing between the edge of enclosure 13 andthe inner edge of the Velcro strip 18 is at least half the distance ofthe width of the Velcro® strip.

The enclosure 13 is formed of a border portion 30 of preferably heavycloth material, the border portion 30 formed by folding the materialback onto itself and retaining it in the folded position as by stitching25, adhesives, or both. Transparent or translucent material is stitchedabout the inner edge portions of the border 30 via stitching 31 to forma window 14. It can be appreciated that the top edge 33 of enclosure 13is not stitched so that an opening 35 for inserting and removingarticles is provided. In order to enhance the water tight seal, a heatactivated adhesive is used to retain the border portion 30 in the foldedposition after as can be seen most clearly in FIG. 5. Thus, the window14 would be secured inside border portion 30 by both stitching and anadhesive. Additional waterproofing may be attained by providing a “ziplock” type seal (not shown), commonly used for plastic food storagebags, for the top edge 33 of the window. This would require using acooperating strip having a groove formed therein for receiving a linearprotrusion formed proximate top edge 33 of window 14. In this instance,a pull tab (not shown) may be provided to facilitate opening of theenclosure 13. The enclosure 13 is then completed by attaching the borderportion 30 with window 14 secured therein directly to the garment 12.

After the enclosure 13 has been formed and attached, flap 15 is attacheddirectly to the garment 12 by stitching. The flap 15 is prepared forattachment to the garment 12 by first attaching Velcro® strips 34 at theborder area of the interior facing surface 36 of the flap 15. It can beappreciated that the interior facing surface 36 is not visible when theflap 15 is folded to cover enclosure 13. Spaces 38 are left along theVelcro® stripping 34 to reduce the amount of force required to “open”the flap. Tab 22 is sewn at the top edge of the flap 15, the tab 22allowing the user to pull down the flap 15 to expose the contents of theenclosure 13. An additional enclosure in the form of an inner pocketformed in the inner facing surface 36 of the flap 15 may also beprovided. A logo, monogram, or other identifying indicia may be affixedto the exterior facing side 42 of the flap 15, the logo optionallymatching the logo associated with the target garment 12 to allow anauthorized manufacturer to give the appearance that the accessory pocket10 was part of garment 12 as originally sold. In accordance with oneaspect of the invention, the accessory pocket 10 is sold tomanufacturers of various well known outer garments for sale either as anaccessory or pre attached to the respective garments. The Velcro® strips18, 34, in combination with the sealing adhesives used for the enclosure13 cooperate to provide a substantially watertight enclosure 13 onceflap 15 is folded up causing the engagement of strips 18 and 34. Also,attaching all three components of the pocket 10, the enclosure 13, theflap 15, and the Velcro® strip 18 directly to the garment 12 in spacedrelation, as opposed to each other, significantly reduces the profile ofthe pocket 10 to produce a more streamlined, integrated look.

In use, once the pocket 10 has been attached as indicated, the wearer ofthe garment 12 may selectively open flap 15 by pulling tab 22 to revealthe contents of the enclosure 13. The enclosure 13 is preferably sizedto accommodate an identification card such as a ski pass, as well assome other relatively small items such as a spare key or credit card. Ifused to contain a ski pass for example, the user may quickly display thepass without having to fumble through pockets or remove heavy skigloves. Alternatively, the enclosure 13 may be sized to accommodatelarger items by using more material or by other means as may be apparentto those of ordinary skill in the art. If sold to a “name brand”manufacturer such as Nautica®, the pocket 10 may be provided with a logoor trademark of the manufacturer to allow for seamless integration ofthe garment and providing an additional display location for themanufacturer's trademark or logo.

From the foregoing description, one skilled in the art can easilyascertain the essential characteristics of this invention and, withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changesand modifications of the invention to adapt it to various usages andconditions.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to thesole embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodimentswithin the scope of the following claims:

1. An accessory pocket for attachment to a garment comprising: a firstcomponent forming an inner enclosure having a border portion directlyattached to said garment and a translucent interior portion; a secondcomponent forming a first closure means attached to said garment inspaced relation to the border portion, said first closure meansincluding four separate strips adjacent three sides of said innerenclosure; and, a third component forming a flap attached to saidgarment in spaced relation to said inner enclosure and said firstclosure means, said flap having a second closure means adapted forreleasable engagement with said first closure means, said flap sized tocompletely cover said translucent interior portion of said innerenclosure.
 2. The accessory pocket of claim 1 wherein said firstattachment means and allow for water resistant engagement of said flapto said first attachment means.
 3. The accessory pocket of claim 1wherein said enclosure includes an opening defined by a top edge, andwherein sealing means is provided for sealingly engaging said top edgeto said garment.
 4. The accessory pocket of claim 1 wherein said flapincludes a bottom edge, said bottom edge attached to said garment inspaced relation from a corresponding lower edge of said enclosure. 5.The attachment of claim 1 wherein said enclosure has side edges, saidenclosure attached to said garment along said side edges and said loweredge.
 6. The attachment of claim 1 wherein said first, second, and thirdcomponents are position in co-planar relation on said garment.
 7. Anaccessory pocket for attachment to a garment comprising: an innerenclosure having a border portion directly attached to said garment anda translucent interior portion; a first closure means directly attachedto said garment in spaced relation to said border portion, said firstclosure means including four separate strips adjacent three sides ofsaid inner enclosure; and, a flap attached directly to said garment inspaced relation to said inner enclosure and said first closure means,said flap having a second closure means adapted for releasableengagement with said first closure means, said flap sized to completelycover said translucent interior portion of said inner enclosure.